Recently I have came across an absolutely great essay by my sister. It is about the motive of French language used in a novel 'Bright lights, big city' and it really captures the nature of the book and ideas behind it.
The author uses French words just for the sake of spicing up the text, due to lack of interest in the English language. Many people claim that that is the reason why Jay McInerney uses these words. My belief is that the words or sentences having something to do with France isn’t there to grab reader’s attention, but rather to point the readers into the right direction of the of the plot and update them with main character’s physical well-being.
The first time the author pointed out France and its national language was on page 2, when you were in a bar with a girl. On “I do not speak English” you immediately asked: “Français?” This being the first language you thought of shows that you has some kind of a personal relationship with this European country. A few lines after that, the author uses a French phrase: “vis-à-vis”, which means “face to face”. That is a key sentence, because it shows, that you even thinks in a different language occasionally, even though you does “not speak French” (p. 10). This first association with France was right before you stated that “You hate Tad Allagash” (p. 2). You obviously feels lonely, due to the fact that Tad left him, that just made him use French words.
You has been given a French piece by Clara. This article made you almost “hang yourself” (p. 8). This paragraph not only speaks about France and the article, you is about to write about it, but it also includes a French sentence: “je ne comprends pas” (p. 8), which means “I do not understand it”. As stated before, you does not speak French, even though he has “the claim of fluency in French on your resume” (p. 8).
Page 21 shows us your clear disappointment, when you find out, that the girl, Elaine, that you have been trying to get together with the whole night, is actually a homosexual a you find “Elaine and Theresa engaged in an unnatural act” (p. 21). “Bon appetite” (p. 21) is your answer to seeing this, which once again proves that whenever you find out something rather unpleasant or you feel casted down, you find a way to cope with it through French words.
Chapter five begins with you meeting Amanda. The author describes how you have felt about her from the beginning, obviously these are unpleasant memories for you. “LES JEUX SONT FAITS„ (p. 27) is the name of this chapter, which distinctly indicates what the atmosphere of this chapter will be. Not only does the chapter start with the meeting of you and Amanda, but it continues to show us the end of their relationship as well. „I’m staying“ (p. 30) is Amanda’s way of telling you that they may never meet again. After calling her several times, you has only been given „Au contraire, Pierre“ (p. 30) as an aswer, that followed her „ripping the last strained tissues that held your heart intact“ (p. 30).
On the contrary, when you finally meats Vicky, he becomes nearly a freshly new person. He forgets about most of his problems, doesn’t have the need to take cocaine and basically feels fortunate again. Page 38 shows us the longest French sentence ever used in this book. “Style-joie de vivre, je ne sais quoi, savoir-faire, sprezzatura” (p. 38). My translator did detect these words as being French, but did not submit any meaning. The only possible way of interpreting this French input is that you has been shocked with pleasure of how perfect Vicky actually is. All he imagined was nothing like she was. You uses French phrases in any kind of emotional shift – not only in being sorrowful, but also in being cheerful.
Julia Cerna, 31.3.2015
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